This Virginia-Highland brunch mashup really works

Dish of the Week: Benedict pizza at Osteria 832

Atlanta has received historic amounts of rain this winter: nearly 12 inches in December. When the whole city is under a semi-permanent rain cloud, we can be forgiven for trying to cheer ourselves up. One good way to do that: the Benedict pizza at Osteria 832 in Virginia-Highland.

Usually, splicing together two very different but beloved dishes produces something that lives up to neither. But, in this case, the combination is so upbeat and lovable that it really does work.

Thanks to the poached eggs with perfectly runny yolks, this is a true knife-and-fork pizza. Lightly drizzled Hollandaise gives you that classic Benedict flavor, but doesn’t overpower the pie. Salty pancetta adds a nice textural contrast, and the presence of spinach brings a bit of vegetal depth that keeps the pizza from becoming overly rich.

Desperate times call for desperate measures, and, in winters like this one, it’s tempting to combine dishes in ways that may appear ... unnatural. In this case, give in to that temptation. Order the Benedict pizza. You’ll be rewarded with a ray of sunshine.